Best Deals for Bose QC15 Headphones + 2,500 More Free Points From Bose

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A good carry-on sized roller bag, a passport, a frequent flyer account, and a laptop/tablet are all basically required for the frequent traveler. It’s kind of like a uniform of sorts. However, I would argue that Bose QC15 headphones are also on the “required” list. I’ll admit that I used to laugh at the notion of spending that much cash for headphones (around $300) – I mean aren’t the white earbuds that came with my iPhone good enough?? However, the more I travel, the more I wanted them. My husband got them first so he could be more productive on business trips, so I was able to try them out without purchasing my own pair. They look a little silly to me in the days of “smaller is better”, but as soon as you put them on, you can tell that they work in keeping the rest of the world out.

For a while we took turns just sharing his Bose on different trips. Honestly, when traveling with a toddler, it is rare that both parents can really “tune out” and have headphones on at the same time anyway. But, when the day came for us to fly to Europe together he made a (rare) proclamation. I needed to buy Bose headphones…today. No sharing. After I muttered about how expensive they are and why can’t we just share (I’m a cheapskate at heart), my real protests were related to how good the mileage promotions are for Bose, and how I would be missing out if I just waltzed into a store and bought them today. We don’t have a Bose store nearby that I could get to in time, so I needed to buy them from a third party retailer.

Some of the Bose offers I was aware of for the Bose QuiteComfort 15 Headphones were:

3 points per dollar from many shopping portals, including Ultimate Rewards

Of course, those are offers if you purchase the headphones directly. I had to go through a third party, and I needed them within a few hours. In my area that meant the Apple Store or Best Buy. With both of those stores you can order online and then pick-up in store within a few hours, assuming the item is in-stock. Both of these retailers offered just 1x for going through one of the online shopping portals that I prefer, but that is better than nothing. Back when the Amex Membership Rewards shopping portal was working, you could usually get products at the Apple Store for at least 4x, but since it is “temporarily” down, that wasn’t an option on the table.

I decided on Best Buy since I had seen an Amex “Link, Like, Love” promotion on Facebook that awarded a $20 statement credit off of a $200 purchase on an Amex at Best Buy. You can also activate this deal via Twitter by tweeting #AmexBestBuy20 after you have synced your Amex to your Twitter account. We also had about $20 in Best Buy rewards saved up from our Best Buy Rewards account (don’t forget reward programs that aren’t miles and points!).

In the end we saved $40 on the purchase between the Amex $20 deal and our Best Buy Rewards. We also earned 1 point per dollar for paying with our rewards Amex and 1 Ultimate Reward point per dollar via the Ultimate Rewards mall. I’d say that approximately 540 points + $40 off wasn’t much worse than the 1,500 AA or United mileage offers that we just didn’t have time to participate in. We also could have used Best Buy gift cards that we had purchased for 5x points at office supply or grocery stores via strategic credit card purchases, but we skipped that in favor of the $20 Amex promo this time. Sometimes you just need something quickly, and can’t jump through too many hoops to get it.

I also couldn’t post about Bose without mentioning that you can currently get 2,500 American Express Membership Reward points for watching a demonstration about the new Bose Videowave TV. The code for that promotion is: AMXTV. Make sure that you give the store your email address so that they can send you the Amex MR certificate. You do have to have an Amex Memerberhip Rewards account to redeem the certificate. If you actually purchase the TV you can get an additional 25,000 Membership Reward points. I don’t want to go see the demo because if I actually liked the TV, there would be no way I could afford it! Based on what I have read, it sounds like this deal is valid at most Bose Showcase stores as well as the outlet stores through the end of August. Thanks to reader James for reminding me about this deal! You can find out more from The Points Guy or New Girl in the Air.

If you know of any better deals for Bose products, please feel free to share the info!

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Comments

@mommypoints, I agree 100% that the Bose are a nice product and worth the money to many frequent travelers. For those that are concerned about the size of the headphones, I would recommend a good pair of in-ear monitors (IEMs) from etymotic or equivalent brand. They have the same effect as a good pair of foam earplugs, but allow you to listen to high fidelity sound at the same time. They’re also not active, so you can have them in during takeoff and landing without any problems–just turn off your device, unplug the IEMs, and if the flight attendant asks, show that the plugs aren’t hooked to anything.
You can even have a pair of custom silicone tips molded for your ears, which make them incredibly comfortable to wear for long periods of time.
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I will also note that etymotic has a line designed specifically toward children. Because outside noise is so heavily attentuated, one can listen at a much lower level, which is, of course, particularly important for children.

My husband’s 6 month old Bose broke in May. He’d purchased through Amazon but had no receipt or tracking. I went to the local Bose store to see if they could fix them, but instead they looked up the serial number to verify that they were not conterfeit, and I walked out five minutes later with a brand new pair.

Just bought (though the Delta portal) the QuietComfort 3 from Best Buy using $15 worth of rewards certificates, a $50 gift card and synced my AMEX, too, for $20 off. Wish I’d get more points from the Delta portal but a good deal off the headphones and I have a trip to Asia later this month.

There is a cheap (though complicated) way to get these amazing headphones cheaper. Bose is very good at ensuring that there are no discount channels so search online as much as you want and you won’t find any under $300.

However Bose does have an excellent repair by replacement deal for $99 + tax. Thus – buy any old used or broken pair on ebay (for around $50) and then get them repaired.

To do this call the # posted on Bose’s customer support line and give them your headphone serial # (printed on a small sticker inside the ear cup). Explain how they are broken and ask them for options. They will give you an RMA# and when they receive your broken pair they will ship you a brand new Q15 set.

For those with older Q1 or Q2 sets there are a few new innovations in the Q15 that you might want to upgrade for anyway. 1) they have the better noise cancelling cards that came first in the Q3 (smaller ear piece model) models 2) they have don’t have the ‘power pack’ of the Q1, 3) they have a very good robust carrying case (much thinner than the Q2) 4) The power light now tells you the power level (green / red), 5) the audio plug is now cleverly slanted rather than 90 deg so you are less likely to damage is if you accidentally yank it when it is plugged in and finally 6) the ear pad are easily replaceable if the leather starts to crack up (which they will eventually (3+ years), leaving little black flecks on your face).

Most of my family swears by these, and I realize their value when listening to music, reading or watching video. Does anyone use them while sleeping to block out cabin noise, especially in the galley? Just wanted to know if they were comfortable enough to leave in on a long transcontinental nap.

I did this strictly for the MR points. I leave near an outlet store. The site says only showcase stores participate, but the outlet store confirmed that they would give me the points. Dolphin Mall outlet store in Miami. I watched the demo, which only took 7 minutes, and the rep who helped me was very knowledgeable about the promo. He entered all the information in the system. You will need an email address and your Amex gold card number. Initially we got worried because we didn’t receive a certificate when we did the demo on 8/4/12, nor did we receive an email confirmation, but we finally got the email yesterday, 8/13. The email has the certificate number and a link to Amex where you enter that number and your credit card number. You then get an email confirmation saying that it has been accepted and points will post within 24 hours. Did this twice, both for my wife and my own credit card, but we actually watch the demo together. Just make sure your store participates, and that whoever helps you is familiar with the promo.

@Bill,
I always leave them on while sleeping on long-haul flights (and even short ones). They are comfortable enough that your ears don’t hurt afterwards and they block out vast majority of surrounding noise (especially little brats crying in the business/first class).

I’ve heard from other people who have better sense of hearing that QC15 are not the best in terms of quality, but they stopped being snobs once I lent it to them for trans-Atlantic flight (you are welcome, dad).

@MommyPoints,
Don’t worry Bose TV is not even that impressive. Sure, demo looks/sounds great. But ask them to play regular broadcasting and watch them twitch nervously. It’s Bose at it’s best: average overpriced equipment (in this case TV), marketing hype, and weird design. But even a blind squirrel finds a nut (QC15) from time to time.

One discount channel is to make friends with a Bose employee. They get all products at 50% off. My BF’s husband works at the corporate office in MA. I might have to get a pair when I visit in the fall.

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Well, I am a married, 30ish (gulp) year old mom of a rock star, adorable, beautiful, fantastic, mischievous, humorous, smarter-than-my-own-good five-year-old. She’s plotting her take over of the world, I’m sure of it! I am obsessed with my adorable and insane kiddo, and also obsessed with earning and using airline and hotel points and miles. Learn more about Summer

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